Why ISR

The Institute for Social Research (ISR) is a well-regarded provider of program evaluation and policy research in New Mexico. Known as an authority on adult and juvenile justice issues in New Mexico, ISR staff members and faculty affiliates also have expertise in the fields of education, economics, substance abuse treatment programs, poverty and homelessness, domestic violence, employee workloads and staffing levels.

ISR is the administrative umbrella for three centers, all of which are funded entirely by contracts and grants. The centers are: the Center for Applied Research and Analysis (CARA), directed by Dr. Paul Guerin; the New Mexico Sentencing Commission (NMSC), directed by Linda Freeman; the Statistical Analysis Center (SAC), directed by Kristine Denman. (The AMCI, which was also housed at ISR, was closed on 12/31/16.) Dr. Lonna Atkeson serves as both the Director of ISR, and also as a Principal Investigator at ISR. In addition, ISR administers several Grants/Contracts/Projects for UNM Faculty as Principal Investigators.

ISR’s objectives are to:

Provide research services to government and NGO agencies,

Serve as a rich source of administrative data for faculty research projects,

Collaborate with state and local agencies and school districts to provide data-driven policy analysis,

Election science

Promote interdisciplinary research among social sciences faculty,

Train undergraduate and graduate students in policy analysis, and

Support grant development and grant administration for faculty-led research related to policy issues.

Project Research and Evaluation

ISR is dedicated to high quality research. Our staff includes sociologists, economists, and government policy experts. Evaluation is the way you show the importance of your project. ISR can work with you to get the most out of your project dollars.